I last spoke with Chris Byrnes on December 18 of 2009 in the bar atop the Pudong Shangri La in Shanghai.  We talked and reminisced a bit, and it brought back memories of old times when we had so often been together in places all over the world  and sat and chatted about matters that were important and sometimes not-so-important.  As others will I'm sure point out, Chris was a generous collaborator whose passion and brilliance in tackling hard mathematical problems made life exciting for those of us who were honored to call him a friend.  The work we did together on the mathematical foundations of electric power grids was guided by Chris's deep insight into the differential topology of the models.  Chris's combination of personal warmth and technical brilliance propelled him to great heights in a multifaceted academic career.  I miss him very much.